The Last Olympian: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 5
Fantasy series' excellent conclusion ups the violence.
Parents say
Based on 20 reviews
Kids say
Based on 157 reviews
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this book.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Rick Riordan's The Last Olympian is the last book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Like the first four books, you'll find plenty of monster-fighting action. This time, the big battle in New York City starts halfway through the book, and fighting is persistent with many casualties, a few of them mourned heavily. Regular mortals in the city are put to sleep for most of it and are mostly out of the way of fighting -- when they aren't, half-bloods will try to move them to safety between fights with gigantic Titan beasts including a sow, rampaging giants, and a drakon (way bigger than a dragon). There's a little gore when a monster is stabbed in and strung up by the eye sockets to be dragged around as a battle trophy. Most half-blood injuries are magically healed, and especially fast if Apollo is around. Expect some mild romance and kissing and product mentions, especially Reebok and Skippy peanut butter. As usual, you can expect great things from our favorite ADHD, dyslexic hero, Percy Jackson. Not only does he take on the gnarliest monsters, he also plays mediator to the gods when he needs them to put aside their many grudges and work together.
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Entertaining and Educational
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Violence goes up a notch, some language, peril
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What's the Story?
In THE LAST OLYMPIAN: PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS, BOOK 5, the Titans are approaching Manhattan to take over Olympus and Percy knows he must do everything he can to slow them down. Most of the gods are fighting the giant Typhon as he rampages from the West Coast eastward, leaving terrible damage in his wake. That leaves Kronos' cruise ship full of monsters off the East Coast. The plan is to sneak onto their ship to plant explosives with his fellow camper Charles Beckendorf, but somehow they're found out and Percy faces Kronos in a sword fight that nearly kills him. After he recovers in his father Poseidon's palace, Percy realizes he'll never beat Kronos, not without taking drastic measures. Enter Nico, son of Hades, and his dangerous proposition. Together they journey to the Underworld for a dip in the river Styx. This will make Percy's body invulnerable -- it worked for Achilles back in the day… kind of. Before they can enact their plan, Hades captures them and imprisons Percy. The God of Death doesn't care if his godly siblings are fighting the Titans and that if Olympus falls, there goes all of Western civilization with it. Now Percy realizes just how difficult this war will be. The half-blood heroes can't fight the Titans without all the gods working together, and right now the gods are more divided than ever.
Is It Any Good?
Yes, Percy Jackson fans, this finale delivers all the goods -- massive monster battles, Camp Half-Blood camaraderie, daring plans, prophecies, spies and traitors, and even a little romance. When the battle ramps up at the halfway point of the book, the worry for those who prefer story over action is that it will be all Titan monster battles, all the time. But there's still plenty of story in the mix. Through flashbacks we learn about Luke's family tragedy and what Zeus did to Hades to create such a rift among the gods. And we follow a number of mysteries, like who is the spy at camp, why is mortal Elizabeth Dare painting scenes from Camp Half-Blood when she's never been there, and where in New York City can you rustle up enough root beer to satisfy a whole army of party-loving centaurs?
OK, now for the action and the monsters. Author Rick Riordan wrangles some truly terrible and gigantic creatures from Tartarus to fight it out in New York City's streets, tunnels, bridges, and rivers. You think you've seen it all -- regular giants, giants with serpents for legs, giant flying sows -- until the skyscraper-hugging, poison-spewing drakon shows up. There's no defeating it without real sacrifice, and readers will cheer for a character they never expected to cheer for as she steps up to defeat it. Of course the biggest monsters to fight aren't always visible, and the final standoff with Kronos/Luke shows how hard giant feelings of anger and abandonment can be to defeat. More than one character shows remorse for turning the wrong path and demonstrates true bravery to admit their wrongs, and then dies a hero. While the finale finish could have stuck to action, it delivers so much more, and will leave readers hoping for more adventures to come with Percy Jackson.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about who the last Olympian is in The Last Olympian. Why do you think campers usually ignore her? Why is she so important? Why does Percy give her Pandora's jar?
Three characters who were once villains are honored as heroes by the end of the battle. Who are they? What other stories can you think of that show a villain turning into a hero? How are these characters usually remembered?
This isn't the end! There's so much more Percy Jackson out there. You can choose from the Heroes of Olympus series or see him make a cameo in the Trials of Apollo series. Will you read more?
Book Details
- Author: Rick Riordan
- Genre: Fantasy
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy, Superheroes, Adventures, Brothers and Sisters, Friendship, Great Boy Role Models, Monsters, Ghosts, and Vampires, Ocean Creatures
- Character Strengths: Courage, Perseverance, Teamwork
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
- Publication date: May 5, 2009
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 10 - 14
- Number of pages: 381
- Available on: Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, iBooks
- Last updated: May 18, 2022
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